WASHINGTON, D.C. (November 5, 2009) - CARE USA's JoDee Winterhof, vice president for policy and advocacy, issued the following statement in response to the Environment and Public Works Committee's approval of S. 1733, the Clean Energy Jobs and American Power Act:
"CARE USA appreciates the priority that Environment and Public Works Committee Chair Barbara Boxer and her committee colleagues have placed on moving climate change legislation through the Senate. This legislation is key to the United States' leadership position in global efforts to tackle climate change and to begin to address the negative impacts of climate change on the most vulnerable.
''We are grateful for Senator Boxer's leadership on this issue as well as that demonstrated by Senators John Kerry, Lindsey Graham, and Joe Lieberman in their announcement of a bi-partisan effort on climate legislation.
"Support for international adaptation and for efforts to reduce deforestation is critical to ongoing international negotiations and must be supported through legislation. These provisions and the level of financial assistance for them need to be robust.
"People who live in extreme poverty, particularly women and girls, are the most vulnerable to climate change yet are the least responsible for causing it. They also have the fewest resources to adapt. It is imperative that we support their adaptation efforts.
"Climate change is a global problem that requires a global solution. U.S. action can ensure that we do not act alone but that other countries join us around shared goals and responsibilities. As climate change legislation moves through the Senate, we call on both parties to engage in this critical effort.''
ABOUT CARE: CARE fights root causes of poverty in the world's poorest communities. We place special focus on working alongside poor women because, equipped with the proper resources, women have the power to help whole families and entire communities escape poverty.
:
Washington, D.C.: Nolu Crockett-Ntonga, CARE,
nntonga@care.org, +1.202.595.2806, +1.202.219.1969
Atlanta: Brian Feagans, CARE,
bfeagans@care.org, +1.404.979.9453, +1.404.457.4644
